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Little House on the Prairie (TV series)
Little House on the Prairie is an American western drama television series, starring Michael Landon, Melissa Gilbert, and Karen Grassle, about a family living on a farm in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s and 1880s. The show is an adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books. Television producer and NBC executive Ed Friendly became aware of the story in the early 1970s. He asked Michael Landon to direct the pilot movie, who agreed on the condition that he could also play Charles Ingalls. The regular series was preceded by the two-hour pilot movie, which first aired on March 30, 1974. The series premiered on the NBC network on September 11, 1974, and last aired on May 10, 1982. During the 1982–83 television season, with the departure of Landon and Grassle, the series was broadcast with the new title Little House: A New Beginning. In 1997, TV Guide ranked the two-part episode "I'll Be Waving As You Drive Away" #97 on its 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time.[1] Premise Although based on the biographical "Little House" stories, many of the characters and situations differ from the original books. The central characters are Charles Ingalls (farmer and mill worker), his wife Caroline, and their four daughters, Mary, Laura, Carrie, and Grace; in later seasons, they adopt three children, Albert, Cassandra, and James. Other essential characters include the Oleson family: Nels, proprietor of the town's general store, Oleson's Mercantile; his malicious, gossiping wife, Harriet; and their two spoiled children, Nellie and Willie, and later, their adopted daughter, Nancy; Isaiah Edwards, Grace Snider Edwards and their three adopted children; the Garvey family, Jonathan, Alice, and Andy; Rev. Robert Alden; Lars Hanson, the town's founder and proprietor of the town's mill; and Dr. Hiram Baker, the town's physician. In season five, Mary Ingalls meets teacher-turned-husband, Adam Kendall. In the season seven premiere, Laura marries Almanzo Wilder. Cast and characters Melissa Gilbert as Laura Ingalls, 1975 Melissa Gilbert has the most appearances of the series. She was absent for 13 episodes, for a total of 190 of the 204 episodes. Michael Landon appeared in all but four episodes of seasons one through eight, but departed from the cast when the show was retooled as Little House: A New Beginning (season nine). Main cast *Michael Landon as Charles Ingalls *Karen Grassle as Caroline Quiner Ingalls (seasons 1–8) *Melissa Gilbert as Laura Ingalls Wilder *Melissa Sue Anderson as Mary Ingalls Kendall (seasons 1–7, 8) *Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush as Carrie Ingalls (seasons 1–8) *Matthew Laborteaux as Albert (Quinn) Ingalls (seasons 5–9) *Richard Bull as Nels Oleson *Katherine MacGregor as Harriet Oleson *Alison Arngrim as Nellie Oleson Dalton (seasons 1–7, 9) *Jonathan Gilbert as Willie Oleson *Victor French as Isaiah Edwards (seasons 1–3, 8–9) *Bonnie Bartlett as Grace Snider Edwards (seasons 1–3, 5–6) *Kevin Hagen as Dr. Hiram Baker *Dabbs Greer as Rev. Robert Alden *Charlotte Stewart as Eva Beadle Simms (seasons 1–4) *Karl Swenson as Lars Hanson (seasons 1–4) *Radames Pera as John (Sanderson, Jr.) Edwards (seasons 2 & 3) *Brian Part as Carl (Sanderson) Edwards (seasons 2 & 3) *Kyle Richards as Alicia (Sanderson) Edwards (seasons 2 & 3) *Merlin Olsen as Jonathan Garvey (seasons 4–7) *Hersha Parady as Alice Garvey (seasons 4–6) *Patrick Laborteaux as Andrew "Andy" Garvey (seasons 4–7) *Linwood Boomer as Adam Kendall (seasons 5–7) *Ketty Lester as Hester-Sue Terhune (seasons 5–9) *Wendi and Brenda Turnbaugh as Grace Ingalls (seasons 5–8) *Dean Butler as Almanzo Wilder (seasons 6–9) *Lucy Lee Flippin as Eliza Jane Wilder (seasons 6–8) *Allison Balson as Nancy Oleson (seasons 8 & 9) *Jason Bateman as James (Cooper) Ingalls (seasons 7 & 8) *Missy Francis as Cassandra (Cooper) Ingalls (seasons 7 & 8) *Shannen Doherty as Jenny Wilder (season 9) Notable guest stars Many actors, who were either well-known or went on to become famous, guest-starred on the show. *Willie Aames (episode 3.15) *Anne Archer (episode 1.17) *Hermione Baddeley (3 episodes) *Jonathan Banks (episode 6.16) *Billy Barty (2 episodes) *Peter Billingsley (episode 8.12) *Dirk Blocker (episode 1.9) *Ray Bolger (episode 5.5) *Ernest Borgnine (episode 1.13/14) *Todd Bridges (episode 3.18) *Red Buttons (episode 1.19) *Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash (episode 3.1) *Michael Conrad (episode 4.8) *James Cromwell (episode 7.1) *Thor Erickson (19 episodes) *David Faustino (episode 7.5) *Gil Gerard (episode 4.4) *Louis Gossett, Jr. (episode 2.18) *Mariette Hartley (episode 2.19) *John Hillerman (episode 5.8) *Rance Howard (episode 3.13) *Ernie Hudson (episode 8.8) *Rick Hurst (episode 1.3) *John Ireland (episode 3.4) *Burl Ives (episode 3.10) *Jack Kruschen (episode 8.6) *Robert Loggia (episode 9.4) *Mike Lookinland (episode 4.4) *Chuck McCann (episode 1.11) *Vera Miles (episode 9.19) *Richard Mulligan (episode 2.21) *Patricia Neal (episode 2.7) *Sean Penn (uncredited student extra) *Anne Ramsey (episode 5.1) *Kim Richards (episode 1.7) *James B. Sikking (episode 3.17) *Madeleine Stowe (episode 7.6) *Mitch Vogel (episode 1.23) *Harris Yulin (episode 1.20) *and two of Landon's children: *Michael Landon, Jr.(episode 3.20) *Christopher Cashion (4 guest episodes) Production crew Of the 203 episodes, Michael Landon directed the largest number at 87; producer William F. Claxton handled the majority of the remaining shows at 68; while co-star Victor French helmed 19; and Maury Dexter directed a handful. The series theme song was titled The Little House and was written and conducted by David Rose. The ending theme music, also written by Rose, originally appeared as a piece of incidental music in a later-season episode of Michael Landon's previous long-running series, Bonanza. Themes Little House explored many themes. Adoption, alcoholism, racism and blindness are portrayed. Some plots also include subjects such as drug addiction (i.e. morphine), leukemia, prejudice, and even rape. Although predominantly a drama, the program has some comedic moments as well. Several of the episodes written by Michael Landon were recycled storylines from ones that he had written for Bonanza. Season two's "A Matter of Faith" was based on the Bonanza episode "A Matter of Circumstance"; season five's "Someone Please Love Me" was based on the''Bonanza'' episode "A Dream To Dream"; season seven's "The Silent Cry" was based on the Bonanza episode "The Sound of Sadness"; season eight's "He Was Only Twelve" was based on the Bonanza episode "He Was Only Seven"; and season nine's "Little Lou" was based on the''Bonanza'' episode "It's A Small World". Spin-offs and sequels ''Little House: A New Beginning'' When Michael Landon decided to leave the show (though he stayed on as executive producer and occasional writer and director), season nine was renamed, the focus was put on the characters of Laura and Almanzo, and more characters were added to the cast. A new family, the Carters (Stan Ivar as John, Pamela Roylance as Sarah, Lindsay Kennedy as older son Jeb, and David Friedman as younger son Jason), move into the Ingalls house. Meanwhile, Almanzo and Laura take in their niece, Jenny Wilder, when Almanzo's brother dies and raise her alongside their daughter, Rose. The Wilders appear prominently in some episodes, while in others they appear only in early scenes used to introduce the story or its characters. The explanation given for the original characters' absence was that they moved to Burr Oak, Iowa, to build a much better life. The show lost viewers, and this version of the series was canceled after nineteen episodes. However, the show lived on for another 1.5 years in movie format.[citation needed] Movie specials Three made-for-television post-series movies followed during the 1983-84 television season: Little House on the Prairie: A Look Back to Yesterday (1983), Little House: Bless All the Dear Children (1983), and Little House: The Last Farewell (1984). In The Last Farewell, Charles and Caroline decide to visit Walnut Grove. They learn that a railroad tycoon actually holds the deed to the township, and he wants to take it over for his ownFINANCIAL gain. Despite their best efforts, the townspeople are unable to drive the businessman away. At a town meeting, John Carter offers a supply of explosives that he has. Each man takes turn blowing up his own building.[2] When asked why the set was blown up, the show's producer, Kent McCray, said that when the series started, he made an agreement with the property owners that at the end of the series he would put the acreage back to its original state. When the production crew were estimating the cost of dismantling all the buildings, Michael Landon thought for a while and said, "What if we blow up the town? That would get the buildings all in pieces and you can bring in your equipment to pick up the debris and cart it away." He then said that he would write it where they blow up all the buildings, except for the little house and the church. Both McCray and Landon wept as the town blew up.[3] Two other Little House movies were made in conjunction with the Landon series: the 1974 pilot for the program and Little House Years (1979), aThanksgiving special/clip show that aired in the middle of season six. Broadcast history For the first two seasons, the show was aired on Wednesday nights at 8pm ET/7pm CT, to moderate ratings. In 1976, the series became a Monday night staple on NBC; after the move, it remained in the top 30 for the rest of its run. Reception Nielsen ratings *Season 1 (1974–75): #13[4] *Season 2 (1975–76): Not in top 30[5] *Season 3 (1976–77): #15 *Season 4 (1977–78): #7[6] *Season 5 (1978–79): #14[7] *Season 6 (1979–80): #16[8] *Season 7 (1980–81): #10[9] *Season 8 (1981–82): #24 *Season 9 (1982–83): #28 Accolades *1976: TP de Oro, Spain, Mejor Actriz Extranjera (Best Foreign Actress), Karen Grassle[citation needed] *1976: TP de Oro, Spain, Mejor Serie Extranjera (Best Foreign Series)[citation needed] *1978: Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography in Entertainment Programming for a Series, Ted Voigtlander, episode "The Fighter"[10] *1979: Emmy Award for Outstanding Cinematography for a Series, Ted Voigtlander, episode "The Craftsman"[10] *1979: Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series, David Rose, episode "The Craftsman" *1980: TP de Oro, Spain, Mejor Actriz Extranjera (Best Foreign Actress), Melissa Sue Anderson[citation needed] *1981: Western Writers of America Spur Award for Best TV Script, Michael Landon, episode "May We Make Them Proud"[citation needed] *1982: Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for a Series (Dramatic Underscore), David Rose, episode "He Was Only Twelve" (Part 2) *1983: Young Artist Award for Best Young Actress in a Drama Series, Melissa Gilbert *1984: Young Artist Award for Best Young Actress in a Drama Series, Melissa Gilbert Popularity in Spain In the late 1970s and early 1980s, La Casa de la Pradera (Little House on the Prairie) was one of Spanish Television's most popular series. Melissa Sue Anderson (Mary Ingalls) won Spanish television's prestigious TP de Oro award for best foreign actress in 1980 thanks in part to the enhanced profile she received as a result of her visit to Spain and her appearance on Spanish Television's 625 Lineas program in early 1979. The continued popularity of the show led to the appearance of Katherine MacGregor (Harriet Oleson) on 625 lineas in 1980. Other media Syndication The show remains popular in syndicated reruns and has been on the air in the U.S. continuously since its original run. In addition to airing on local stations, it has been airing multiple times each day on INSP[11] and Hallmark Channel.[12] In the past, it has aired on TV Land and TBS. In the U.S., television syndication rights are currently owned by CBS Television Distribution. Originally, NBC licensed these rights toWorldvision Enterprises, since networks could not own syndication arms at the time. As a result of corporate changes, Paramount Domestic Television and CBS Paramount Domestic Television would inherit the rights, finally passing to CTD in 2007. In Canada, reruns of the series began airing weeknights on CTS, a Christian-based network, as of September 1, 2008. Because of its historical context and its connection to the book series, it is deemed acceptable for use by the FCC to meet federal E/Iprogramming guidelines. The show is typically stripped (run five days a week) in syndication, which is enough to completely cover a TV station's E/I requirements and more. NBC owns ancillary rights and thus is the worldwide licensor for DVD rights as well. Sister company NBC Universal International Televisiondistributes the series internationally. DVD, Blu-ray & Digital Copy releases The entire series has been released on standard-definition DVD and on both standard and high-definition Digital Copy. Seasons 1 to 6 have been released on high-definition Blu-ray, but there are no plans for any additional Blu-ray releases.[13][14] There are multiple DVD sets which are noticeably different from one another. The original DVD sets sold in the U.S. and Canada were released under license from NBCUniversal by Imavision Distribution, a company based in Quebec. A majority of the episodes in the original North American DVD versions had scenes cut from the episodes—these were derived from the syndicated television versions by Worldvision Enterprises, the series' former distributor. Other episodes were time-compressed; these are NTSC-converted video prints from UK PALmasters, while others were derived from 16MM syndication prints, also from Worldvision. Only a handful of episodes in the original sets were in their original uncut versions. The episodes in these original sets are also known to have relatively poor video quality, such as tracking lines, as well as audio problems, though the quality issues are not as pronounced in the first few seasons as they are in the later seasons. The first three seasons of the old sets notably are also missing closed-captioning. These original North American DVD sets included interviews with former cast members Alison Arngrim, Dabbs Greer and Dean Butler. For the original complete series set, Imavision provided numerous additional special features including additional interviews with many of the cast members such as Melissa Gilbert and Melissa Sue Anderson and specials highlighting Michael Landon, the casting of the show, and more. Imavision also released a French-language version of the series. Both versions are in NTSC color and coded for all regions. Later copies of these original sets were distributed by Lionsgate Home Entertainment following their acquisition of Imavision, but these should not be confused with the Lionsgate re-releases described below. The DVD sets sold in the United Kingdom were released by Universal Playback (aUniversal Studios Home Entertainment label); this version is in PAL color and coded for region 2. Unlike the original North American DVD sets, the UK version contains mostly uncut episodes. In 2014, Lionsgate Home Entertainment began re-releasing the series in North America on DVD, and also for the first time, in high definition on Blu-ray, as well as Digital Copy through providers such as Vudu and Amazon Video. These new releases contain mostly uncut episodes and are remastered to have superior picture and sound. The Blu-rays, with their high bitrate, high definition 1080p picture and lossless audio (as opposed to standard definition picture and compressed audio on the DVDs) currently provide the best viewing experience of the show that is commercially available. However, starting with Season 7, Lionsgate has chosen not to release any more Blu-ray seasons.[13] This has baffled and frustrated many fans because earlier Blu-rays of the show were widely praised.[14] The new Lionsgate sets do not include the special features present on the earlier releases, but rather seasons 1 through 6 each contain a roughly 15 minute segment of a newly produced special called "The Little House Phenomenon". None of the available releases of the series contain "Little House Years", which was a three-hour Thanksgiving special with flashback clips that originally aired during Season 6. The Digital Copy release does not include the three post-series movie specials but does include the Pilot movie, much like the new Season 1 DVD and Blu-ray release where the Pilot movie is also included. Prior to official full season DVD releases, some single Little House episodes were released on both DVD and VHS by GoodTimes Entertainment. Episodes were also available on VHS through a Columbia House club subscription, with two unedited episodes per tape. Category:1974 American television series debuts Category:1983 American television series endings Category:1970s American television series Category:1980s American television series Category:American drama television series Category:English-language television programming Category:NBC network shows Category:Little House on the Prairie (TV series) Category:Period television series Category:Period family drama television series Category:Television programs based on novels Category:Television series by CBS Television Studios Category:Television shows set in Minnesota Category:Western (genre) television series